Did Meguiar's car shampoo ruined new car windshield?

[Bluehorse]

New to the forum, desperate for help - but I can't find out how to upload photos mentioned below from my laptop , so pls help let me know how to and I will upload ASAP.

I have a brand new 2015 BMW X5. A few days ago at 2,000 miles I gave it first wash, using Meguiar's Gold Glass Gar Wash Shampoo and Conditioner (see first picture).

Today noticed multiple streaks on the front windshield glass and one streak in the rear window (see remaining photos). I have tried 10+ different methods to clean these off but they simply won't budge. I mean no improvement at all. I have been driving and washing cars for over 20 years, and never had such problem before.

Your suggestions to root cause and/or clean these streaks will be really appreciated? I may try buffing or polishing the glass as a last resort - will that compromise the optical clarity of the glass?

Here are further details:

1. The streaks are on the outside surface of the glass. One can tell by measuring its depth when looking at both sides of the surface from an angel.
2. The streaks seen in person don't resemble oily marks, but instead more like dried mineral or damaged coating. It is not easy to see when you look directly through the glass, but visible when looking from an angle or at the reflection against a consistent background.
3. The pattern is consistent with shampoo ran down from the roof to the glass. The car wash was done at 10am, temprature probably around 60~65 degrees, and cloudy during 70% of the wash and partially sunny the tail end of the 30%.
4. Did not notice any on the doors' glass, neither the pained body. Note that this X5 has Xpel film on the hood, front bumper.
5. When my finger ran across the glass surface, I think I could feel the pattern of the streaks, but I am not sure whether that was because the height of the surface or the smoothness is different. 4. I discussed with folks in the X5 online forum. We are guessing that possibly the Meguiar's shampoo interacted with either BMW X5 windshield fluid residual on the glass or maybe there is factory coating on glass (does anybody know any auto windshield glass is ever coated at Factory? I plan to call BMW dealer tomorrow to find out).
6. I have tried so far the following: glass cleaner, Gold Glass Car Wash (again), windshield fluid, tissue paper, towel, white vinegar, mineral spirit, goo gone, 91% rubbing alcohol, nail polish remover. Also put a soaked cloth on top of the glass over night and tried again, still no luck.
7. What I plan to try next, in turn, are: 409, windex, CLR lime remover, acetone, Liquid Ice Clean-Up (http://www.toolsource.com/liquid-clean-detailer-spray-p-144511.html), Autosol Glass Cleaner, polishing compound.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Did Meguiar's car shampoo ruined new car windshield?

First off, welcome to MOL.

Secondly, we've moved your thread out of "Hot Topics" and into "Detailing 101".

OK, with that out of the way, let's take a look at the issue at hand.

Gold Class Shampoo & Conditioner is a pH neutral car wash soap. Even if the worst case scenario had happened and you grossly over used it (ie, your dilution ratio was crazy high) and you then let it dry on the paint, the worst thing that would happen is you get some soap spots on the surface. But then it would be all over the vehicle - every single place that got wet with the soapy water and dried. And it would actually be quite easy to remove with just a simple wash. And it sure wouldn't etch or otherwise damage the glass. If anything was to be damaged it would be something delicate and easy to damage - like the paint.

An interaction with any sort of residue from the windshield washer fluid is also highly unlikely. That stuff is super safe as well, and mixing the two won't cause any sort of chemical reaction that can damage glass.

What's really telling here is that this is happening only on the front and rear windows, and nowhere else. There is no factory coating on the outside of the glass - no manufacturer does that. And with all exterior glass surfaces being equal, why would this not have happened on the side glass? Why no damage to rubber trim or paint?

Without seeing images it's a bit difficult to see what sort of damage exists, but our guess based on the description (and because we've seen this sort of thing in the past) is that something leaked onto the glass, and possibly the roof, and it was "fixed" by the dealer or transport company. It is possible that the roof was repainted (this is, of course, only speculation on our part but again, we've seen it before) and that the glass appeared to clean up. In reality, the issue shows up later on, long after such an incident was (hopefully) forgotten. Yes, the new car owner is supposed to be told of repainted panels due to damage in transport, but again, we've seen far too many cases where that did not happen. It even happened to one of our own employees with a German luxury brand, but that particular car was built in Germany and transport damage was done in the port. The port never told the dealer, so the dealer couldn't inform the buyer (our employee). But we noticed some issues with the hood, and he took it back to the dealer, who wanted to repaint the hood. Our employee said he didn't want the hood on a brand new German luxury car resprayed, and that's when the dealership's body shop guy pointed out that a door had been repainted. And that opened a huge can of worms that, ultimately, saw the dealer take the car back and totally unwind the deal.

So, before we go any further here, let's see some pictures. All you need to do here is upload them to our gallery and then copy and paste them into a response to this thread. This article, How to place an image in your messages , will help you with that part.

[davey g-force]

Re: Did Meguiar's car shampoo ruined new car windshield?

Pretty much my thoughts too.

Either there was something on the windshield previously and the dealer covered it up, then car washing / rain has uncovered it again, or the Dealer (not factory) has applied a glass coating. Good glass coatings, applied correctly still shouldn't do that, but maybe it was a cheap product an/or it wasn't applied correctly.

Also, PLEASE don't try anything too drastic like some of the products you described. The first thing I'd be doing is claying and (if needed) compounding the affected glass.

[jfelbab]

Re: Did Meguiar's car shampoo ruined new car windshield?

Some glass comes from the factory with a water shedding coating. Usually only the side windows but I don't know about your model. My Lexus dealership applied a glass coating on my 2014 windshield. I had to resort to using M105 with a polishing pad to remove it. It was streaky and the coating was hard to remove. Glass cleaners and IPA didn't touch it. I'd ask your dealer if anything was applied. The car is new and the dealership should correct this issue, IMO.

[Bluehorse]

Re: Did Meguiar's car shampoo ruined new car windshield?

Hello, folks,

Thanks for the detailed analysis! I visited BMW Dealer whose detailing apartment was able to clean the stains completely. I have attached below the photos of stains and in the last photo the solution they used to mop clean.

Though I still don't know for sure what caused the stains, my guess is calcium deposit from water, a high shampoo to water ratio, and the mixture dried on the windshield for extended period of time during my wash. What I still don't understand is why the various cleaners I tried had absolutely zero effect. And I tried to scrub pretty hard too. Be happy to hear your thought.

The chemical solution BMW dealer used (MOC D.H. Water-Spot Cleaner) is said to contain acid, and pretty strong. They used a towel wet with this chemical to wipe the glass, followed by spray of water and another towel to mop up the water. They came off easily.

With a few new things learnt, and came across many helpful people, I feel rich again!

THANK YOU!